ToryDiary: Dr Charles Tannock MEP backs £10 charge for GP visits
Dylan Thomas on Platform: Why I believe Iran is behind the upsurge in British casualties in Afghanistan
Seats and Candidates: Richard Harrison selected for Easington
International: Increased support for Canada's Conservatives cools election speculation
Tim Montgomerie on CentreRight: Keep Laura Kuenssberg blogging!
WATCH: How a new baby boom has pushed the UK population over 61 million
The Times backs politicians like Daniel Hannan questioning establishment views...
"Conventionally, politicians try to avoid saying controversial things. They adhere to “the line”, try to avoid embarrassment. The result is a bland discourse, and a politics delivered in code. No one says what he or she means, everyone hints at it, and tries to avoid breaking any taboos. This code is one of the things that people most dislike about politics. It excludes anyone but the insider. It leads to assumptions that ought to be questioned remaining unquestioned. It can render political debate meaningless. Take Mr Hannan’s remarks about the NHS. If these are to be regarded as too outrageous to leave the lips of anyone in public life, then an entire strand of opinion goes unrepresented and the debate on healthcare is stunted." - Times editorial
> Yesterday's ToryDiary: Dan Hannan in the news
...as the Daily Mail calls on David Cameron to give the NHS some "tough love"
"Mr Cameron, in particular, is frightened to voice all bar the gentlest of comments, for fear of being accused of 'nastiness'. This stance is increasingly untenable. The NHS is staffed by many tremendous doctors and nurses. And, yes, the founding principle of free healthcare for all must be preserved. But it must also be acknowledged that the 60 year-old NHS is not sacrosanct. Every week it swallows £2billion from the public purse, yet - as recent days have shown - it is inefficient, bureaucratic and provides woeful value for that money. It is time for Mr Cameron to end his timidity and give the NHS what it so desperately needs - some tough love." - Daily Mail editorial
Tax credits could face axe in Tory welfare shake-up
"Tax credits could be scrapped as part of a long-term reform of benefits, the Conservatives have suggested. Theresa May, the Tory work and pensions spokeswoman, used a speech on welfare to attack tax credits in principle, rather than the way that they are implemented. Previously under David Cameron, the Conservatives have said that they opposed the way tax credits have been managed and did not think that they should be given to the middle classes." - The Times
Chris Grayling rebuked by Baltimore mayor over The Wire parallel
"After drawing parallels this week between what his party calls "broken Britain" and the fictional drama about the crime-ridden US city of Baltimore, Chris Grayling, the shadow home secretary, was rowing back last night as he came under fire from two figures he would probably rather keep on side: the mayor of Baltimore and the chief constable of Greater Manchester police." - The Guardian
> Tuesday's ToryDiary: Chris Grayling lambasts Labour for failing Britain's poorest communities and outlines the Conservative approach to reversing social breakdown
Lord Ashcroft attacked by Prime Minister of Belize
"In an extraordinary attack, the Prime Minister of Belize accused Lord Ashcroft of being "predatory" and implied that he had subjected the former colony to "new age slavery". "There will be no more suffering of this one man's campaign to subjugate an entire nation to his will," said Dean Barrow in a specially convened parliamentary debate called to renationalise the country's main telephone company, which was formerly owned by Mr Ashcroft... Mr Ashcroft's political links in Belize are with the People's United Party (PUP), which lost control in an election last year to Mr Barrow's United Democratic Party (UDP)." - The Independent
Jeremy Hunt outlines why he favours local TV over regional TV
"According to Ofcom only 59% of people are interested in watching programmes about their region. This is unsurprising given that places as far apart as Bristol and Falmouth are in the same region. This compares to 70% who would like to watch content about their city or town. It is local not regional TV that consumers want - and we are the only party giving serious consideration to why it is that Britain is one of the only countries in the developed world not to have a local TV sector. The key question is whether such a sector can be commercially viable." - Marketing Week
Boris: Tax on City profits would be "crackers"
"Boris Johnson today hit out at plans to impose fresh taxes on the City of London as "crackers". The Mayor went on the offensive after Financial Services Authority chief Lord Turner called for a new levy on the financial services industry." - Yesterday's Evening Standard
East Renfrewshire PPC Richard Cook on this summer's social action project in Bosnia
"Richard Cook, the Tory candidate for East Renfrewshire, was one of 30 conservatives who travelled to Srebrenica in Eastern Bosnia, backdrop to genocide in 1995, as part of Project Maja... He described the Bosnian project as a huge learning experience. "I think people in the current parliament should go out there to see it, but particularly people for the future parliament, from all parties. If there is going to be more trouble, more ethnic cleansing, then I think it is likely to happen within the term of the next Parliament. The better informed that people are, then the less likely it is that the UK parliament will turn its back on the people the way it did previously, much to the shame of a Conservative government and everybody else who was in that parliament of the time." - The Herald
> Dudley South PPC Chris blogged for CentreRight about Project Maja in Bosnia here and here
Ignore Grazia girl at your peril
"The Grazia interview is a savvy move by the Tory leader. The relationship between the party and the magazine has become quite cosy of late. Samantha Cameron is regularly featured as a style guru on its pages and last year the magazine ran a long feature, declaring the Conservatives are cool... Politicians ignore Grazia girl at their peril. The latest poll (July) from Ipsos-Mori showed that the Tories had a three point lead over Labour among 18-34 year olds – in other words, 32 per cent of young people said they would vote Conservative against 29 per cent Labour." - Emma Jacobs in the FT
> David Cameron's Grazia interview was covered in ToryDiary posts here and here
Neil O'Brien: A Simple solution to GCSE grade inflation
"Rather than tearing up the exam system, we could – as many other countries do – simply publish two different measures. Alongside their grade at GCSE or A-level, pupils would be given a percentile score, telling them what proportion of their fellow students did better or worse." - Neil O'Brein in the Daily Telegraph
And finally... Vote blue, go pink: Tory logo turns rainbow in attempt to win the gay vote
"The Tories have unveiled a 'gay-friendly' logo in bright rainbow colours in a bid to attract new voters. The green and blue tree trademark has been given the vibrant makeover ahead of the party's annual political conference in Manchester. The emblem, launched on the Conservative website, is being used to promote a 'Conference Pride' event at the rally next month... More than 700 people are expected to attend a £15-a-head bash at the trendy Spirit Bar in Canal Street, the heart of the city's famous gay village." - Daily Mail
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